Metallic rod packing



Jan. 10, 1928.

, J. BADEKER METALLIC ROD PACKING Filed Aug. 25. 1920 2 Sheets-Sheet l JOHNBADEKER Jan. 10, 1928.

J. BADEKER METALLIC ROD PACKING Filed Aug. 25. 1920 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 J HN BADEKEE Q ringsections or sure thereof is exerted constantly Patented Jan. 10, 1928.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

Joni: BADEKER, or JoLrn'r, ILLINOIS; ASSIGNOR 'ro CHICAGO STANDARD METALLIC PAoK InoooMPANY', A CORPORATION on NEBRASKA.

METALLIC ROD PACKING;

Application filed August 25 1920. Serial No. 405,867.,

My invention relates to metallic rod-packing of the type employing pa clringings comprising se iiicnts or sections of'which the abutting end faces extend. tangentially, or siibstantially so, to the rod and the bore of the pa king-ring. It is the object of my in vention to provide, in a rod packing of this type, means for holding adjacent packingrings in fined circumferential relation to each other, whereby said rings are prevented from moving intosiich relation as to bring .t on'8, whereby there is a considerable clearthe' joints thereof into longitudinal alinenientjwitli each other[ A further object of my invention is to provide eihcient means forip reventing the outer overlapping end portions of the ring-sections or segments beingdisplaced outwardly from the rod, A further object of my invention is to provide means for yieldingly resisting closing of the segments upon the rod, whereby to reduce the pressure and friction between the packing and the rod, and thus correspondingly reduce wear of said parts, while preserving the same. A further object of my invention is to provide, in a packing of this type, retainingsprings so arranged that the presnear those ends of the segments or ring-sections which move toward the rod during the closing of the packing-rings thereon. Further and minor objects'of my invention'will be set forth hereinafter.

In the accompanying drawings Fig; l is a longitudinal or axial section of a rodpacking assembly embodying myinvention, Fig. 2 is a front view of the retaining ring with the packing assembled therein, Fig. 3 is a similar View, showing a modified form of the packing adapted for use whe're-it'is subjected to high pressure, Fig. 4c an'axial section on the line 4i of Fig. 3, Fig. 5 is a front view of a packingring and retaining ring, showing the form of the packing-r ng when worn and Fig. 6 is a similar view of the modified or high-pressure form of the packing.

There is shown in Fig; l a typical arrange- .nient of tl e packing, with auxiliary or an cessorv devices, suitable for use on the piston ro d of a locomotive. In the arrangement shown, the packing isdisposed around a 'p ist amt-7 having an enlarged portion 8 sod thereh-twhieh is external to the a, fluid-tight oint between engine-cylinder. he cylinder-head 9 has therein a stuiiingbox l0, and at the open end of the shilling-box a gland 11 is secured upon the head by suitable bolts 12. I At the rear side of the gland there is a neck-ring 13 having an outwardly extending flange which is clamped between the head and the rear edges of the gland so as to form fluid-tight joints therewith. In each of such parts 9, 11 and 13 the bore or central opening is of sufiicient iameter to pass over the enlarged rod-pen ance space around the portion ofthe rod which normally passes through said parts.

In the gland-chamber 14, adjoining" the front end thereof, afstop-ring 15 is disposed around the rod. Said stop-ring fits slidably against the inner face 16 of the gland, with which it forms a fiuidtight joint, and tits somewhat loosely upon the. rod, not being designed to form a fluid-tight joint with the latter. In the rear. portion of the chamber let a back-ring 17 is disposed around the rod, said back-ring resting slidably against the neck-ring 13. The followenring 18 is disposed around the rod in front of the backring 17, and is provided in its rear face with several cylindrical pockets in which are disposed small coil springs 19, the ends of the latter abutting the back-ring and said springs serving topress the follower-ring yieldingly forward against the packing rings, which are disposed between the follower and the stop-ring. The stop-ring 15, back-ring 17 and follower-ring 18 are each divided into two parts-by splitting the same in a plane intersecting. the axis of the rod, and the two parts of the respective rings are held together by means of annular coil springs 15, 17' and 18 disposed in grooves formed in the peripheral faces thereof. Said rings are formed as described, to enable them to be assembled around the rod, since it would be impossible to pass an integral ring over the enlarged portion 8 of the rod unless the bore ofthe ring was larger than said rod-portion.

As hereinbefore mentioned, the packingrings consists of sections or segments having abutting plane-surfaced end-faces which extend tangentially, or substantially so, to the rod; Referring particularly to the structureillustrated in Figs. 1 2 and 5, the body- 20 of the segments are: :te'ctanguhir of the segments, and

' disposed a spring i the retaining-springs,

in transverse section, and the end-faces 21 and are parallel to each other, whereby two of the segments form a complete ring when saidtangential end-faces 21 and 22 are placed respectively in contact with each other. It will be observed that the end-face 21 of each segment is exposed outwardly of the rod, and the face 22 is exposed inwardly or toward the rod, whereby, with respect to the overlapping end-portions of the segments, those having the outwardly exposed faces 21 may be designedas the inner ends those having the in wardly exposed faces may be designated as the outer ends of the segments. A pair of the packing-ringsyeach consisting of two of the described .egments, is disposed within a housing or which retaining-ring 23 or the width or axial dimension is slightly less than the combined thicl'mess of the packing-rings. Between the retaining-ring and each segment of the packingrings, there is 24,- whlch so shaped that it tends to assume a bowed or arcuate form, of a radius considerably less than that of the here or inner surface of the retaining-ring, whereby the ends of the springs press inwardly upon the segments, and the middle portions of the springs press outwardly against the retaining-rin As the retainingring is substantially unyielding, the pressure of the springs 24 exerted inwardly upon the segments tends to close the latter upon the rod, and thus holds the inner concave faces thereof against the rod even when there'is no pressure as of steam or the like, within the gland-chamber 14. It will be understood, however, that the principal pressure exerted upon the packing is not that of which merely hold the segmentsin place against the rod, but is the pressure of the steam which passes from the cylinder through the stu'lfing-box, neck-ring, back-ring, and follower, into the glandchamber 14, whence it is prevented from escaping by the fluid-tight joints formed between. the gland and stop-ring, between the stop-ring and the packing, and between the packing and the rod.

Now, in rod-packing of this type, as the bore or inner concave faces of the packing segments are worn away andthesegments close upon the rod to compensate said wear, each of the segments tends to move pivotally about a point adjacent to the outer end thereof, or that end which overlaps the inner or wedge-shaped end of the complementary segment. Referring to Fig. 5, which shows the form of the segments after the same have become considerably worn, it will be seen that the radial thickness of the outer overlapping end-portions of the segments is substantially the same as before the segments are worn, while the radial thickness of the opposite or inner overlapped end-portions is considerably reduced. There is also a tendency for the wedge-shaped inner end-portions of the segments to crowd the outer endportions out away from the rod, and to thus cause the formation of an opening between the rod and the packing adjacent to the points of the wedge-shaped inner ends, and likewise to cause an opening or separation of the endfaces 21 and 22. Referring again to Fig. 5, the original form of the inner concave faces of the segments is represented by the dotted lines from'whichit will be seen that the portions of the segments worn away are substantially meniscitorni, being of greatest radial thickness atthe middle portions of the segments and gradually tapering therefrom toward the ends. It will be apparent, for the reasons above stated, that wear of the inner surfaces of the packingrings cannot be perfectly compensated by closing of the segments upon the rod, and that after the packing has been in use for some time there will be a leakage around the rod adjacent to the ends of the segments, although the middle portions of the segments will continue to conform perfectly to the surface of the rod, and maintain-a fluid-tight joint therewith. For this reason it is necessary to employ more than one packing-ring in order to maintain tightness of the packing as a whole, and by disposing the adjoining packing-rings so that the joints of one ring alternate, circumferentially ofthe rod, with the joints of the other ring, any leakage through one of tlie'rings may be stopped by that portion of the other ring which remains in perfect contact with the rod. it will be understood, of course, that there is no difficulty in maintaining fluid-tight joints be tween the abutting faces of the packingrings, which extend perpendicularly to the axis of the rod. It will is notet further, that to prevent leakage as above described, it is essential that the alternating relation of the joints of the adjoining packing-rings be maintained, since if one ring should be shifted circum'ferentially relatively to the other, so that the joints were in alinement longitudinally of the rod, leakage might occur through both, or any number, of the packing-rings.

In order to prevent circumferential shifting of the packing-rings relatively to each other, as above noted, I provide upon the outer side of each of the segments a cylindin-segmental lug which fits into a similarly formed recess in the inner sur ace of the retaining-ring23. The centers of curvature z of the arcuate faces of the lugs 25 are substantially coincident with the axes about which the respective segments tend to move pivotally during the closing thereof upon the rod; and the recesses, into which said lugs 25 fit, are so located in the retaining-ring that the joints of the packing-rings lltl re'ta ining-rin'g, being same within therecesses, due to the p votal lugs which were movements of the segments aboutthe axes 2.

In packing of this type, as customarily constructed heretofore, the segments have been'provided near the ends thereof with adapted to rest against the inner face of the retaining-ring, the purpose of said lugs being to prevent the outward displacement of the ends of the segments, dueto the cr wding beneath the same of the wedge-shaped opposite ends of the complen'ientary segments, as hereinbefore mentioned. Said lugs did not, however, interengage with the retaining-ring to prevent relative circumferential movement of the paL-kingrings, and consequently it was pos sible for the adjoining packing-rings to shift cirumferentially until the joints were in "lenient longitudinally of the rod. Moreover, the n'iaterial in the picking-rings is usually a-soi'newhat-soft and malleable metal, and as the lugs and the retaining-ring had merely a pointor line-contact with each other the material forming the lugs would readily upset at the points of contact with the retaining-ring, whereby the lugs would fail'to effect the function for which they were intended, namely, that of preventing outward displacement of the outer overlapped ends. The lugs 25, as employed in my packing, present a broad contact or bearin'gsur face for engagement with the retaining-ring, and the area of hearing-surface is thus greatcnough to prevent upsetting of the metal in the lugs, so that it is substantially impossible for the packing to fail through outward displacen'ient of the ends of the segments. This is of: particular importance in preventing leakage at the joints between the end-faces 21 and for itis apparent that a fluid-tight joint must be maintained between said faces, especially those of the packing-ring which engages the stop-ring 15.

On each of the segments 20, near the end opposite the lug 25, there is provided a small rectangular lug 26 which serves to prevent circumferential shifting of the retainingspring 24, and insu 'es that the springs will always bear upon the segments at points near the ends thereof which have the greatest inward movement, whereby the springs will be most effective in closing the segments upon the red. It will be noted that ordinarily the retaining-springs for packing of this type are made normally straight, whereby the ends thereof bear against the retain- Eng-ring while the middle portion of the spring bears against the packing-ring. The pressure of the spring is thus exerted upon a point near the middle of the segment,

where it is not so effective in closing the seg ment upon the rod as when the pressure is exerted near the end of the segment. Moreover, as the ends of the spring move away from'each other during the inward move ment of the segment, should the inner face of the retaining-ring become scored or grooved where the ends of the spring en gage the same. said ends of the grooves, and'the spring thus prevented from straightening, so as to be ineffective for sing inwardly upon the segment. Bc s previfuitzng circumferential shifting of the rotaining-springs, the lugs maintain a suitable space between the retaining-ring and the bodies of the segn'icnts, into which the springs may be readily inserted when assembling new packing upon the rod.

Referring now the packing shown in retaining-ring 23, the outer portions of the segments, including the lugs25 and 26, are of the same form and have the same functions as hereiiibefore ClGLCl'ibQCl. The body-portions 200 of the segments are of rectangular transverse section, as before, but the slidably engaging faces 210 and 220 of the overlapping ends of the segments are made tangent to a cylinder slightly larger in diameter than the rod or the bore of the packing-ring. In consequence of this variation inthe location of said faces, there is a shoulder or face 221 formed at the end of the face 220 and extending radially to the rod and the face 210 does not terminate at a sharp edge adjoining the rod, there being at the end of said face 210 a face 211 which extends substantially radial to the abutment opposing the shoulder or face 221. lVhen the packing new there is a considerable space between faces 211 and 221, and said space is filled with a blocl: or plug 27 of a metal which is softer, or more ductile and malleable than the metal of which the main bodies of the segments is made. For example, the main bodies of the segments are usually made of a metal such as hard babbitt, or a soft brass or bronze composition, whereas the blocks or plugs 27 may be of a metal such as lead. In this form of the packing, as the segments are worn and close upon the rod, the faces 221 and 211 gradually approach each other and thus reduce the volume of the space between them But the soft-metal blocks or plugs 27, being confined at all sides, oppose the closing of the segments, and the latter are thus prevented from moving inwardly except by deforming the soft blocks and squeezing the material thereof against th rod, so that it will be worn and carried away thereby. This form 3, 4 and 6, the springs 24;, and the of the packing is especially suitable for use R I spring are liable to become caught in said scores or to the modified form of rod and forms an said opposing must be slightly ing portions of from the retaining-springs and surfaces.

with high-pressure steam, and when so used the soft-metal. bloeirs greatly prolong the effective life of the packing excessive pressure between the packing and rod, with consequent rapid wear and depreciation of the packing-rings. It will be obvious, of course, that the total pressure to which the packing is subjected, both from the pressure 01" steam within the gland-chamber, more than enough to cllect the detorniat a oi the blocks 2? as otherwise the packing-rings would be entirely prevented from closing upon the rod and thus con'ipensating wear oi the contacting in order to prevent loss of the blocks 27 when assembling, or removing and replacing the packing. the blocks are formed with projecting lugs or tongues 28 and 29, which tit into receises formed in the adjointhe segments. Said lugs or tongues are cylindro-segmental in the form shown, the lug 28 extendin parallel with the rod and the lug 29 extending snhstantially radial thereto. The recesses in the segments, into which the lugs 23 and 29 can tend, are conveniently formed by dril rig holes into the segments in the appro riate directions, and the blocks and lugs are con-- veniently' formed by pouring molten metal into the spaces formed betweenthe segments when the same are held in their proper assembled relation. It will be seen that the two lug-recesses intersect in a T-shaped form, and that substantially all of the soft metal except that forming the lugs 28 and 29 is displaced when the packing-ring has reached its limit of wear, as shown in Fig. 6.

Referring again to the general arrangement of the packing, it will be noted that there is suiticient clearance space gland-chamber 14;, around the retainingring, stop-ring follower and baclcring, to enable lateral movement of all of said parts should the rod not be concentric with the openings through the gland and neck-ring. Now, having described my invention,

by preventing in the what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a metallic rod-packing, a packingring comprising a symmetrical pair of segments having overlapped chordal end-faces, each of said segments having upon the outer overlapped end thereof a cylindro-segmental lug of which the axis'or curvature is parallel with the axis of the bore and is adjacent to the chordal end-face, and a retaining-ring disposed around said packing ring and having oppositely disposed cylindro-segmental recesses in the bore thereo receiving the cylindro-segmental lugs of the segments and providing a bearing-surface of large area for said lugs whereby to prevent outward displacement of said ends of the segments while allowing pivotal movement of the segments about the axes of curvature of the lugs as the opposite ends of the segments swing inwardly to compensate wear of the bore-surfaces.

2. In a metallic rod-packing, a packingring comprising a pair of symmetrical segments having inclined overlapping endfaces, bearing means at the outer overlapped ends of the segments forming pivotal axes therefor at fixed positions radially of the rod, means tending tomove the segments about said axes inwardly of the rod, and deformable means between portions of the segments adjoining the rod and adapted to limitedly resist closing of the segments toward the rod. 7

3. In a metallic rod-packing, a packingring comprising symmetrical segments having contacting inclined overlapping endtaces and recesses formed at the inner termini of said end-faces adjoining the bore of the ring, soft-metal blocks disposed in said recesses and completely filling the same, whereby to oppose closing movement of the segments toward the bore of the ring and means engaging the outer'portions of the segments for pressing the same inwardly.

JOHN BADEKER. 

